Starborn by Stan Lee & Chris Roberson

January 11, 2011

‘I just know this is what I’m supposed to do with my life. The second I get a contract on the novel, I’ll quit my crappy job and make something of myself.”

Two issues in (at least, after enthusiastically seeking out a review copy) and I’m glad to report that Stan Lee & Chris Roberson’s Starborn isn’t just another comic series on the shelf. It has reminded me once again why Stan Lee’s comics are always a joy to read, and is definitely reinforcing why Chris Roberson is currently one of the best writers in the business (seriously, check out his work on Vertigo’s iZombie with artist Mike Allred, you”re brain will thank me). If the trend continues, Starborn will become one of the handful of comics that I happily collect and is more than worth passing on to you.

To set the book up for a moment, Benjamin Warner is an aspiring writer mindlessly drudging through the work week in an unfortunate office job while he chips away at his first novel in his free time. Warner is immediately a likable character, and as something of an everyman I imagine that most of us will relate to his wanting to better his situation and follow his dreams — though I doubt we’ll have to face an alien horde that seems intent on our destruction the next time we drag ourselves in to work.

It seems that the characters from his books are more real than he could have realized and save for the timely intervention of a childhood friend, in the form of the lovely Tara Takamoto, he would have been doomed to destruction by the claws of his very creations. The book moves at break neck speed and there’s never a dull moment as Khary Randolph masterfully lays out the story in his uniquely dynamic style. The pages prove very fun to look at whether the story has Warner sitting at his desk, or falling from a 50-story skyscraper and I like that with situations like this that the book certainly doesn’t take itself too seriously. I’m also looking forward to seeing some of the world building Roberson appears to have in store for us as we’re introduced to the cosmic side of our “Starborn” hero. This is a fun one so far folks, and there’s always room for a little more of that in comics, at least there certainly is in my collection.

If interested, look for Starborn #2 from BOOM! Studios this Wednesday at your local comic shop. See if you can’t pick up the first issue as well, as both will be well worth the trip.

Contact Info. & Reviews

Contact Info.

Should you have a quick comment, suggestion or a general question you can feel free to contact me at:

texcap1(at)yahoo.com

Reviews

Should you be interested in me reviewing your book, feel free to contact me at the e-mail address above (or contact me within the comments section of a particular post). There will be no responsibility on my part to review a particular book, and I can't promise that I'll be able to drop everything to read it straight way, but I will do my best to leave honest feedback where I can, and gushing praise where I feel it is warranted on the site.

As for the genres I'm willing to review, they pretty much run the gambit, but I'm most interested in focusing on fantasy, sci-fi and mystery/horror for the purposes of the site. Still, I'm open minded and willing to review where able so contact me if you think I can help draw attention to your honest to goodness effort.

The only other provisions are that while I will read small press books, these do not include print on demand efforts at this point, nor do I have the time, interest (or eyes) for reviewing e-books. There may be a few other exceptions in there but feel free to ask away.